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Summary
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June is one of the two main characters in the story. She’s 11 years old and is Chinese American since her parents are from China but she was born in the United States. June’s family isn’t affluent, but up until her father’s death, she had a pleasant life, and in her days at Huey House, she fondly remembers “coming home with fruits in pink plastic grocery bags and fresh pastries still warm from the oven” when her father was still alive (332). Her father’s death upended her comfortable situation and caused her and her family to move into a shelter for unhoused people. June has trouble adjusting to the shelter and blames “bad luck” for her situation. As she becomes a part of the community, however, she begins to take action and pursue her goals, and her “luck” accordingly changes for the better.
The viola is crucial to June’s transformation. When she gets it back, the instrument cements her bond with Tyrell and the other people in Huey House. After June performs for them in the chapel, Marcus quips, “We’re coming to all your concerts, and we’re going to be that annoying family that makes a lot of noise” (318). She realizes that family and home have multiple iterations. Marcus and the people at Huey House qualify as family and make the shelter a home because they love and support her. At the same time, June experiences an improvement with her traditional family when Mrs. Yang shakes herself loose from her incapacitating sadness and starts caring for her daughters again.
Aside from being an excellent viola player, June is mature and responsible. With her mother unable to do much for most of the story, June becomes the de facto head of the family. She packs their items when they are evicted and looks after Maybelle every day at Huey House. Mrs. Yang refers to her oldest daughter as “big sister,” and June wonders if this is a form of condescension or a compliment. In the end, June realizes that the term is a positive label that alludes to her reliable character.
June tends to be timid, but through her new friendships at Huey House, she learns to overcome her lack of confidence, and Lulu’s mother encourages June to do a “superhero pose” to overcome her shyness. When June gives a powerful speech at City Hall, she becomes a more assertive person.
Tyrell is the other main character, and his perspective alternates with June’s throughout the novel. He’s in the sixth grade, and he’s around June’s age. Tyrell has Black and Chinese ancestry, and he has lived at Huey House for three years and is comfortable there. Although he is mischievous, he is a good person. Due in part to his best friend, Jeremiah, he does his homework and does not hurt undeserving targets. When his prank with the cranberry juice backfires and targets June and Maybelle, he and Jeremiah feel guilty and apologize.
Tyrell adores classical music, though he admits, “None of the violinists he had ever seen looked like him, with his brown skin and hair buzzed at the sides and sticking straight up at the top” (249). June helps Tyrell develop his passion when she refuses to go back to Domenika unless Domenika gives him lessons too. Reflecting on the violin that Domenika gives him, Tyrell thinks, “No one had ever given him something so beautiful” (271). The word “beautiful” reflects Tyrell’s artistic, sensitive characterization.
Tyrell’s main flaw is stubbornness. He and Jeremiah plan to live in Huey House until they’re 18 and then move out and find a place together. However, when Jeremiah and his mother find a decent apartment and move, this plan collapses, causing Tyrell to briefly run away and confront his past. This journey and the letter from the brother of his father’s victim help Tyrell realize that his future can unfold in a different way than the life of his father. His life remains “filled with possibility” at the end of the novel (402).
Jeremiah is Tyrell’s best friend, but he’s not Tyrell’s sidekick. Jeremiah is something of a role model to Tyrell. He has “an unhealthy obsession with homework and school, and […] [h]e insist[s] on dragging Tyrell along with him” (69). At the same time, Jeremiah and Tyrell are equal partners when it comes to creating mischief, and Jeremiah often advances these plans by skillfully picking locks. His imminent move forces Tyrell to come to grips with the fact that although life changes, friendships can endure.
Lulu is a 16-year-old girl who lives in Huey House with her mother, grandmother, and little brother. Lulu is a warm presence, and she’s the first residents to make June and Maybelle feel welcome. She greets them before they get on the school bus, giving Maybelle candy. Tyrell and Jeremah think that Lulu is attractive, and they both have crushes on her. Lulu isn’t interested in them, however, and she treats Tyrell like a pesky little brother. Her main concern is helping all the Huey House residents.
Ms. Gonzalez is the head of family services, so her job is to assist the families in Huey House. She finds Tyrell’s mother a job and uses the services of a good program to get Jeremiah and his mother into a suitable apartment. She also builds strong bonds with young people by giving them their favorite foods and engaging them in thoughtful conversations. After June speaks to her, the narrator notes, “Ms. Gonzalez had not asked one question June had expected her to ask” (281). Because Ms. Gonzalez cares more about improving the welfare of the residents than about upholding HQ’s unjust standards, Ms. MacMillan fires her. Ms. Gonzalez wants to have a positive impact on the lives of the people in Huey House, but the company only cares about moving them out within 90 days and reaping the financial rewards for doing so.
Ms. MacMillan is the story’s chief antagonist, representing New York’s unfeeling and bureaucratic attitude toward unhoused people. Ms. MacMillan is always a negative presence. She once threw away a child’s gecko, and she’ll also throw out June’s musical instrument if she finds out about it. Her devotion to rules and regulations makes her a cartoonish figure. At the same time, Ms. MacMillan embodies the cold, callous nature of the many organizations tasked with addressing the growing unhoused population. As she says when she fires Ms. Gonzalez, “Unfortunately, HQ has decided that the focus should be solely on housing rather than services. You have openly opposed these priorities, so today will be your last day” (297). Her clipped, precise diction in this scene reveals the disconnect between the unhoused population and the people who are supposed to be helping them.
Domenika lives next door to Huey House. She plays the violin each night, and Tyrell sits in the fourth-floor alcove and listens. Abuela has a connection to her and convinces her to give June lessons. Domenika is a willful, over-the-top character who initially frightens June. The girl refers to her as a “fire-breathing dragon with a werewolf for a pet” (221). June and Domenika reconcile on the school bus in a scene that mixes sincerity with humor, and Domenika reveals her concern for June and her friends once again when she agrees to drive them to City Hall.
Maybelle is six years old, so she’s five years younger than June. Maybelle adores dogs and deeply misses their dog, Nana. Desperate to see her, Maybelle goes to the shelter without telling anyone. The stress of her unannounced absence brings her family together, pushing her mother out of her sadness.
Mrs. Yang is June and Maybelle’s mother, and the death of Mr. Yang has made her “so sad” that she temporarily becomes unable to care for her daughters.
Tyrell’s mother embodies many aspects of problematic parenting. When Ms. Gonzalez finds her a job, she complains about the uniforms and the smell of the bathrooms and soon gets fired, and Tyrell regularly depicts his mother as self-centered and peevish. However, she does stand up to Mr. Fernsby when he tries to move her and Tyrell to Queens, telling him, “Don’t you dare. I don’t even have a job” (344). Meanwhile, Tyrell’s father is in jail for murder, and Tyrell worries that he might one day grow up to become like his father. However, the letter from the brother of the victim, Juan Ortiz, disabuses Tyrell of this notion.
Marcus is the head of the security, and when June first sees him, she describes him as a “a guy who belong[s] on one of those world wrestling shows” (16). Yet Marcus is an ally, helping June hide her viola and helping the residents organize their City Hall protest.
Mamo is a cook from Hawaii, and although she seems grumpy and uncaring, she is conscientious of the residents’ needs. She gives Tyrell potatoes to peel when his feelings overwhelm him, and she considers making meatless dishes for Maybelle.
Humberto is the maintenance man, but he plays a critical role as a driver. After June becomes a part of the school orchestra, he drives to Chinatown to pick her up, and he drives Maybelle to visit Nana.
Stephanie works at the front desk. She has a crush on Marcus, but he is not interested. Stephanie doesn’t show concern for the Huey House residents, and she doesn’t relay Jermiah’s messages to Tyrell, furthering their conflict.